The Queen's Diamond Jubilee is expected by the Centre for Retail Research to boost UK spending by almost £509 mn (including retail sales to overseas customers).
The Centre expects output to fall slightly - by £100 million - as a result of the double bank holiday, when many commercial premises will be closed.
The net overall impact of the Jubilee will therefore be a boost to the economy of +£409 million.

The retail impact of the Jubilee is expected to be £508.94 million. This will consist of: celebrations and retail shopping (£271.01 million, 53.3% of the sales boost); souvenirs (£196.68 million, 38.6% of the impact); and additional tourist spending at retail (£41.25 million, or 8.1%).

Additional retail spending will result from the long weekend of 2 to 5 June. There will be two bank holidays, a Jubilee Pageant, The Big Lunch and other more informal celebrations, the BBC Concert. 2012 beacons will be lit and a Thanksgiving service held.

Although many commercial and public-sector buildings will be closed because of the second bank holiday, we feel that the negative impact of this has been exaggerated. The lost output, sales, and administration will be made up very quickly and clerical, sales and administrative workers will often be working remotely so the long-term impact will be small. In additional people enjoy bank holidays particularly when the sun shines.

Retail Effects

2.9 million are expected to attend The Big Lunch events and street parties. Around 1.9 million back-garden celebrations will be held as well as 3.0 million loosely-themed barbeques and other parties (not under the auspices of The Big Lunch). Celebration spending on food and non-alcoholic drinks will be £105.97 million.

Spending on alcohol is expected to be £79.74 million, including £25.00 million on champagne and (a nod to a more frugal way of life) sparkling wine.

The four-day break is expected to generate additional retail spending of £60 million in comparison stores.

£25.30 million is expected to result from retail spending by those attending the major Jubilee events: the Pageant, for example, will be attended by 1 million people.

Souvenir spending, including 12 million coins and medallions, are expected to generate £196.68 million in retail sales. Sales of coins and tokens should be £37.50 million and 5 million mugs and pottery/crockery should produce £21.50 million for retailers. 120,000 teapots should increase takings by £1.68 million. Books, stationery and toys should produce retail sales of £53 million, including DVDs and digital media of the main events.

An extra 250,000 tourists are likely to come to the UK and their retail spending (additional) will be around £41.25 million.

The Online Effect

A lot of the spending will be done online.

Online sales are expected to rise by £134.15 million as a result of the Jubilee.

A high proportion of souvenir spending, as was seen last year with the Royal Wedding, will be online - £139.63 million. Celebration spending will produce in additional sales £42.89 million from the Jubilee.

The existence of hotel broadband and availability of smartphones will enable £17.16 million of online spending to come from tourist additional spending.

Online retail spending will be boosted also by the fact that the Jubilee will be marked by a double bank holiday and we expect £24.00 million of online spending while people watch Jubilee events on TV or because stores may not be open as long as usual.

Detailed Statistics

Souvenir Spending

We expect 12 million coins, medallions and tokens to be sold mainly as keepsakes or presents for children (total sales £37.50 million) and 5 million mugs and pieces of crockery (£21.50 million) as these are mostly inexpensive mementos that are also useful. We expect 120,000 teapots as symbols of England to be sold, expected retail value £1.68 million. Other souvenirs including models and flags (including those sold as decorations for The Big Lunch) with expected sales of £20 million.

On the basis of what happened in 2011 as a result of the Royal Wedding, sales of souvenirs overseas by UK retailers are likely to go mainly to the US, Australia and Canada and are expected to amount to £45.00 million.

Books, stationery and toys are expected to produce retail sales of £53.00 million. The key items are expected to be DVDs and digital media of the main DJQE events (the figure includes downloads) estimated to be £19.00 million and albums, biographies and pictures as mementoes and gifts and are estimated to produce retail sales of £16.00 million.

Other sales include toys and games, stationery and pens and Jubilee-linked luggage and bags. There are expected to be 2 million Jubilee-linked pens sold, mostly of the cheaper kind (£8 million).